L.A. Noire Delayed Again to 2011

An analyst watching the video game industry has revealed that L.A. Noire has been again delayed and that Rockstar Games appears not to have yet shown the video game to any retailer chains, despite the fact that it was set to come out at some point during the fall.

Evan Wilson, who is an analyst working for Pacific Crest Securities, has told investors that, “We have confirmed the delay of L.A. Noire from fiscal Q4 (Oct.) well into 2011. As far as we can tell, Take-Two has not shown the game to retailers.”

He added, “Clearly, management either has no control over the release of its games, cannot accurately predict the timing of their completion or is not concerned with the forecasts it issues to investors. In any case, the delays have reinforced the low confidence we have in current management. We continue to have low confidence that management has any idea about when its games will actually be released and believe the confidence that it displays to investors is misplaced.”

For a long time Take Two has been criticized for relying too much on its biggest franchise, the Rockstar made Grand Theft Auto, and for not putting enough effort into making sure that other projects arrive on time and have the quality to become blockbusters.

L.A. Noire has first been announced in 2005, is developed by Team Bondi and will set the player loose on a faithful recreation of the Los Angeles of the 1940's, with the aim being to solve a series of murders that initially appear to be unconnected.

The video game started life as an exclusive for the PlayStation 3 but it was then picked up by Rockstar and it was revealed that it will also arrive on the Xbox 360.

Earlier reports suggested that the game might even be canceled but neither Take Two nor Rockstar offered any confirmation.